How to Play the Hug-a-tree Game

This game requires two players and one blindfold or bandana. The players must be old enough to lead one another blindfolded, and you might want to start with some guiding tips—to move slowly, hold the blindfolded person securely by the arm, and use words to guide them over roots and other obstacles.

Card Games

Depending on the size of your group, you might find that card games are the perfect way to while away the hours. From smaller group games like gin, gin rummy, king’s corners, war, and old maid to big group games like spoons, a deck of cards can be the answer to your boredom problem. Challenge the teenagers in your group to learn something tricky like pinochle, bridge, or canasta, or introduce a younger child to the rules of solitaire. Spoons—a card-game version of musical chairs—is especially good for a group with a little excess energy.

Riddles to Share with Friends

Family Activities

Here are just a few ways to have fun with your family in the great outdoors:

Go on a nature hike to see what you can seeSkip stonesGo swimmingTell stories around the campfireLook for constellations in a starry skyPlay tagPlay I SpyMake s’mores or roast marshmallowsGo rock scramblingHop over puddlesPlay Duck-duck-gooseThrow a FrisbeePlay cardsDrawWrite a poemSing a songPlay a guessing gameRead a book aloudPlay a board gamePlay follow the leader around campTake photos

Who am I?

This is a guessing game for older kids or adults. One person, the “lead,” starts by thinking of the name of a person, either real or fictional, dead or alive—but with a first and last name, such as Nancy Drew. They announce to the group “my first name starts with N.” The group gets busy thinking of famous people whose first names start with N, like Napoleon Bonaparte, Nora Roberts, Nicholas Cage, Nancy Reagan—but they keep these names to themselves.

The person who thought of Napoleon then comes up with a question that fits Napoleon’s life, something like “Did you try to conquer Europe?” They voice their question out loud. If the lead can think of the person they have in mind—or any famous person for whom the answer to the question is yes—they can answer “No, I’m not Napoleon.” They’ve managed to defend their person’s identity for the moment and someone else takes a turn. If they can’t think of anyone who fits the question, then the person who asked it gets to ask one question about their person (Nancy Drew), something like “are you living?” “Are you fictional?” “Are you a woman,” etc. If the lead is able to come up with a person who fits the question—but it isn’t who the asker had in mind—the lead’s secret name is still defended. The asker can then come up with another question that fits the name they had in mind.

After the lead successfully defends themselves, someone else can take a turn. For instance, the person who thought of Nicholas Cage might try to think of the most obscure fact they know about the actor, in order to stump the lead. So instead of asking “Are you a famous actor?” they might say, “Were you in Raising Arizona?” If the lead can’t answer, they get to ask a pointed question about the lead’s name.

Because this game takes a lot of thought and planning, it isn’t necessary that the players go in order. If one person has a lot of questions ready to ask and no one else has any, go ahead and let the person ask, since this keeps the game moving forward. This is a fun game to play with mixed generations, since some will know all about Harry Potter while others are well versed in the lives of Mickey Mantle and Doris Day.

How to Play I Spy

This is a standard of children’s car trips. One person looks out the window—or right inside the car—and picks out something they can see. They formulate a true sentence that includes a clue about what they see, such as “I spy with my little eye something that’s blue.” The other player tries to guess what they had in mind. The beauty of this game is that the other player can guess as many times as they like, making it a great game for small children. Once the item is found, the roles reverse and the other person can choose the secret item and say “I spy with my little eye….”

Telephone

This old-fashioned game works best when it’s started off with a sentence that’s either long or complicated—or both. The kids sit in a circle, and one person starts by whispering the sentence in their neighbor’s ear. That person whispers it on to their neighbor, who passes it along until everyone has had a chance to hear and repeat the sentence.

In the end, the last child can repeat the sentence out loud as they heard it, to see if it transformed along the way. It almost always does!

How to Play the Game - Story Circles

There are as many ways to build group stories as there are kids on the planet. When you’ve tried all of these, see if your group can make up a new version that they’ll want to play again and again. To begin a chain story, one person starts with a conditional sentence (something that starts with the word “if”), such as “If my bike gets a flat, I’ll have to walk.” The second person picks up the second half of the sentence and adds something of their own, like “If I have to walk, I’ll take my dog.” Then the third, “If I take my dog, we can get ice cream.” Keep going until you get bored, or until everyone has had at least two chances to add to the story, then start again with something new.

How to Play the Ongoing Riddle Game

Ongoing riddles are a great way to entertain a group, whether you’re on a hike, in the car, or just milling around camp. Start one of these puzzles at the beginning of your trip—they’re tough and it might take the whole time to solve it! These are best for kids aged ten and up.

More Riddles to Share with Your Camping Pals

Scavenger Hunt

Take a family trip through nature when you go on this self-designed scavenger hunt. First, make up a list of things you want to look for. Then, head out on a nature hike and have each person check off the items they see. If you’d rather (if you’re hiking with smaller kids), search as a team and point out what you see so everyone can take a look.

If you’re camping with another family, you can divide into teams and race or give prizes for the most unusual finds. However you play, be sure to leave nature where it is. As long as you only take away memories, written notes, drawings, and photos, everything will still be there for the next scavengers to find.

Ideas for your Scavenger Hunt list:Three different bugsThree different flowersThree rocks of different colorsThree trees with different leaves or needles.

Variations for older campers:One set of tracks (draw on a piece of paper)Two different habitatsSomething redSomething blueSomething whiteSomething yellowSomething purpleA bug that fliesA bug that walksA bug that slithers, wiggles, or crawlsIn a pine forest, three different kinds of conifer treesIn a deciduous forest, a tree with oval leaves, one with pointed leaves, and one with blade-like leaves

Art Scavenger Hunt

Using a camera or a piece of paper (for pencil, pen, or pastel drawing), capture the following pictures in your campground. If you can’t find one, substitute a fun picture of your own.

Look for a:picnicsleeping dogtentbirdcampfirepair of dirty shoessquirrel in a treebunch of tired campers

When you’ve finished, look back through your photos or line your drawings up on the picnic table. See if you can make up a story that would use all of your pictures as illustrations. Don’t be afraid to insert yourself and your family as the main characters!

How to Play the Word Association Game

This game is best—and silliest—when you move quickly, spitting out the first thing that comes into your head. The first person starts with a word, something like “river.” The next person says the first thing they think of, say “flow.” And the next “go.” And the next “stop,” and so on.